Buckmasters Magazine

A casual coyote hunt turned into a buck of a lifetime for one vocal Oklahoma man.

I didn’t have great expectations that November day, but I did have some free time, so I decided to spend the evening in the woods about 200 yards from my house.

As I walked out the door, I grabbed my son’s .22-250, thinking my chances of seeing a coyote were better than anything else.

I have a Double Bull blind on a greenfield, and just as I settled in, I heard some commotion up by my house. “You have to be kidding me,” I thought.

Knowing I wouldn’t be able to enjoy the evening while worrying that someone was robbing my house, I gathered up my stuff and headed back. The wind wasn’t right for that blind, so I talked myself into thinking it was for the best.

Little did I know how right I was.

I got home, and it turned out the noise was just someone working in the nearby cemetery. I still had some daylight left, so I headed back out. This time I drove around to the other side of the field where I have another blind.

Feeling better about the wind from the new location, I settled in and got comfortable.

Not long after, I heard coyotes off to the west. That was perfect because that would most likely bring them across the field right in front of me. I checked everything on my T/C Encore and got ready.

To my complete surprise, the first thing I saw was a doe and two yearlings come out into the field. The doe was nervous and kept looking back over her shoulder. We all know what that means!

Sure enough, a buck stepped out moments later. I didn’t even have to think about whether to shoot. This guy was a bruiser.

I immediately dropped the binoculars and quit looking at the buck. I knew if I stared at him too long I could easily get buck fever, and I needed him to move before I could take a shot.

There was one branch in front of the blind and, of course, it was right over the buck’s vitals. I considered shifting to get a different angle, but the yearling was right there looking my way, and I didn’t want to take a chance of spooking it or the doe. I chose to sit and wait.

The buck made its way across the field, nibbling on alfalfa the whole way. When he got to about 75 yards, he lip-curled one of the yearlings. That’s when I took the shot. He dropped immediately, but I scrambled to put another shell in just in case.

The does had no idea what happened, and I ended up having to run them out of the field since I couldn’t sit in the blind and wait for them to leave. I had to get my hands on that buck.

With every step, the rack got bigger and bigger. When I finally reached him, I kept walking around him, screaming at the top of my lungs.

Next, I thanked God and thought about my father and best friend, both of whom had passed away.

After about 10 minutes, I calmed down and called my wife to tell her I shot a monster.

She said, “I wondered why you were yelling down there!”

I still get chills thinking about it.

Editor’s note: Billy’s buck is a true monster. It measures 182 1/8 in the Semi-Irregular category for the Buckmasters Trophy Records and has a composite score (including spread) of 200 7/8 inches.

• Late-Season Bucks: When it comes to hunting in the cold, it’s all about the food.

• When the Wind Blows: Strong winds seem to send deer underground, but you can find them.

• Snow Tracking Bucks: A fresh coating of white stuff can be like a road map to a big whitetail.